The PlayStation 2 has always been home to a plethora of RPGs, both of high
quality and of bargain bin notoriety. This year was no different, with twenty
different titles spanning everything from the end of the .hack series to the
Final Fantasy MMORPG to remakes. In such a large pool of quality games, there
are still a few gems that will shine brighter than the rest, and the readers managed
quite well to pan out the purest gold. Their choice for top PS2 game for the
year of 2004 fell to Star Ocean: Till the End of Time.

Although the first Star Ocean game for the SNES was never released in North
America, Star Ocean: The Second Story became a cult hit of sorts, garnering a
huge following as time passed. Despite being a bug-filled game, it had the
potential of 200 hours of gameplay with all of its endings. Thus, the third Star
Ocean game would have some rather big shoes to fill. Plagued by constant
release date delays, eventually RPGamers received the Director's Cut, and it
seems they felt it was certainly worth the long wait.

Star Ocean boasts an exploration system that will certainly keep the
perfectionist RPGamer busy for hours, as well as a trophy collection system
that can span multiple save files. With various difficulty levels to choose
from, anyone from the casual to the hardcore can relish the game. There's
plenty of pretty graphics, and a music score just as appealing, to entice
those that are still hesitant. Round it out with a solid storyline and oodles
of gameplay time, and RPGamers find themselves with a game that speaks for
itself as to why exactly it won first place in this year's reader awards.

Scoring the silver award in the eyes of the reader is the macabre yet amusing
Shadow Hearts: Covenant. The third in a series of dark and gritty games set
at the turn of the century, the Shadow Hearts games are set apart from many
other RPGs by being set in actual European and Asian settings instead of a
fantasy world or somewhere far off in space. Its battle system sets it apart
from many other games, and its story is engrossing and at the same time more
than a little humorous. The title lacks much originality besides the lauded
Judgment Ring, which is both a boon and a detriment that ties the game to
previous Covenant titles. Those not already familiar with this system may not find as deep an enjoyment as they
found with the previous game. Covenant still manages to retain a quality feeling to it, and the readers
gave it their nod of approval for the year's second best.

Cracking the top three may a surprising entry for many. Either rabidly loved or
despised deeply, enough readers voiced their approval for Shin Megami Tensei
III: Nocturne, which rounds out the top three PlayStation 2 games. While it may not be for
the weak stomached, Nocturne's storyline revolves around becoming a demon and
harnessing those around you to eventually find out what the heck happened to
Japan. Challenging is a good word to describe Nocturne; but for many
the game went beyond difficult into frustrating. Much like Wind Waker,
the unique graphical style also set it apart as something that not every
RPGamer could truly enjoy. While agreeably a game with flaws, it is one that
is worth the effort to many readers and it squeaks into one of the coveted top
spots.